Monthly Archives: September 2010

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Vapur recently partnered with jovoto, Dwell Magazine and Opportunity Green to launch the “Thirst For Design” competition, a graphic design contest allowing artists to contribute creative ideas for a new “Artist Series” of anti-bottles. These bag-like bottles will make carrying tap water more fashionable among a wide variety of age groups. Vapur anti-bottles are foldable and reusable, making them easy to carry anywhere you go. They are also BPA free, dishwasher safe and freezable. The company believes in putting an end to the harmful plastic waste that is bottled water, and the winning designs embody this belief. They were so impressive that we decided to feature them on our blog. Visit jovoto’s “Thirst for Design” website for more information.

Design Contest Winners

First place: “Water is Fun”

The designer’s overall goal was to create something sexy and fun that would target all age groups. This anti-bottle features a series of cartoon characters (including a monkey that resembles Paul Frank) involved in a variety of activities that will make you sweat. After running, dancing, lifting weights, or doing anything “fun,” you’ll need some water, and what better source is there than a Vapur anti-bottle depicting the reason behind your thirst in a fresh, unique way. Perhaps the most impressive thing about this submission is the design’s easy adaptability to other media such as t-shirts, posters and stickers.

Second Place: “Bottle Inhabitants”

This design is simple, unique and humorous. The egg-shaped “bottle inhabitants” are annoyed by the filling of the anti-bottle, but who can resist these cute characters?

Third Place: “Fantastic Tap Water”

Implied by its title, this design promotes “fantastic tap water” through a series of depictions, including: “the sea snake and Robinson Crusoe”; “the dangerous deep sea fish”; “the octopus and the stranded pirate”; “the little mermaid”; “the crab and the walker”; and “the black shark in the pouring rain.” The artist calls them “freaks of the Caribbean.” And if you’re ever stranded on an island surrounded by salt water like the creatures in these depictions, you’ll need a taste of refreshing, healthy tap water from your Vapur anti-bottle.

Fourth Place: “World Changers Collection”

This design features a series of halftone portraits of people who have changed the way the world thinks, including: Mahatma Ghandi, Abraham Lincoln, Charlie Chaplin, Martin Luther King Jr. and Mother Theresa. The back of each bottle features a typed quote by the person depicted on the front. The idea is simple, yet revolutionary, as the quotes are relevant to positive future change, which is the whole reason behind the Vapur anti-bottle as a product.

Fifth Place: “Relation Between Plants and Water”

This double-faced design features two main types of plants – a cactus and a leaf. The cactus bottle design represents a source of water, while the leaf bottle design represents a need for water. The water level in the bottle can be seen through the leaf’s transparent veins or through the cactus’s prickly spines.

Sixth Place: “Small World”

The artist has included three different, yet related designs in which the front of the bottle features a creature (either a fish, a deer or a plant) surrounded by a globe-shaped cloud of plastic waste, underneath the text: “My World is Getting Smaller Every Day.” On the back of the bottle, the creature has been freed from this cloud, and sits underneath the text “If Your YOU Changes, its World Changes.” Once again, the world-changing impact of the Vapur anti-bottle in general is a part of the bottle design itself. Nice work.

The “Artist Series” bottles will be available in 2011. In the meantime, purchase the Vapur anti-bottle in one of five different colors from Filters Fast for a discounted price.

Researchers from the University of New Mexico at Albequerque have recently discovered an inverse correlation between infectious disease and IQ, suggesting that societies that have greater instances of disease are, on average, less intelligent.

At first glance this seems hardly surprising. Many infectious diseases are caused by contaminated water which is found in high quantities in developing countries. Water contamination in these areas may be attributed to lower income levels and fewer educational opportunities than those that exist in developed nations. Of course with fewer educational opportunities, a high level of intelligence is unlikely.

Interestingly, however, the report shows that these factors – income and education – among others that were tested, have very little influence on one’s intelligence. According to the data, most countries with poor water quality and sanitation have lower average national IQ levels, suggesting that waterborne illness plays a role in brain development. The reason for this is that the energy used to fight disease is diverted from the development of the brain.

The moral of the study: clean water is not only essential to good health. It makes you smarter! This finding is just as critical to developed nations as it is to poor countries, since our water is often contaminated by the chemicals used to prevent waterborne illness. For example, PFOA, the chemical used to coat nonstick cookware, has been found in several water supplies and is linked to ADHD – a disorder, which, while not classified as a learning disability, often affects a child’s ability to learn. We must all, not only do our part to help those in developing nations gain access to clean water, but also ensure that we have access to uncontaminated water resources.

Google Analytics is a funny thing sometimes. If you’re unfamiliar, Google Analytics allows blog owners to see the search terms that bring surfers to their blog. Upon searching through some of these keywords this morning, I noticed that many of you are looking for a “4 Bottle Water Filter.” Others were looking for the four bottle water filter, four bottle water purifier, Filtrete water bottle system, 4 bottle water filter system, 4 bottle water purifier, filter water four bottle, filter with four water bottles, filtered water bottle filler, four water bottle filler — I could go on and on.

Whatever you call it, you guys are all searching for the new 3M Filtrete Water Station, which allows you to filter and fill four water bottles in just seconds. Just fill the Filtrete Water Station with water from your sink, and the Fast Flow Filter reduces sediment and the taste and odor of chlorine from your water.

We just added the 3M Filtrete Water Station to the site, and we’re really excited about it. Up to 40 percent of bottled water is nothing more than filtered tap water, so why pay an arm and a leg for it? With the Filtrete Water Station, you can bottle your own water at home and take it with you wherever you go. Save yourself cash and save the environment from the many water bottles that go unrecycled every year.

If you’ve got a family that loves drinking water and would like a few extra bottles to have on standby, you can purchase replacement water bottles for the Filtrete Water Station. These reusable water bottles hold 16.9 ounces of water and are BPA free water bottles. They are also dishwasher safe.

So whatever you call it, the 4 bottle water filter — I mean the 3M Filtrete Water Station — is a great choice for anyone who wants to filter and bottle their own water at home. Here’s a quick video explaining how the 3M Filtrete Water Station works: